Tinder, Hinge and Bumble: Meeting people is weird!

Nowadays, meeting people on the train, in the cafe, bus, at the gym, or wherever, is obviously much more complicated than in the days of our parents or grandparents.

After all, who travels on public transport without earbuds or headphones? Or perhaps worse than that, who walks down the street without looking at their smartphone screen?

Life has changed a lot in the last few decades, and as such, meeting people has also become a lot more complicated, especially for shy people like my example and possibly yours, who don’t even know how to say “hello” just just because.

It is exactly for this reason that “dating” apps began to appear! With the most popular being the old man Tinderwhich in the meantime began to have to deal with rivalry from many other similar apps, such as Bumble or Hinge.

But… Are they really rival apps?

This is extremely interesting, but in fact, a single company owns the majority of the most popular dating apps on the market. We’re talking about Match Group! Where we can not only find the three apps already mentioned, but also Match, Meetic, Pairs, Plenty of Fish, OKCupid, Azar, Chispa, BLK, The League and Hakuna.

The apps are all very similar, because they are all from the same company! Therefore, they have the same basic objective, and even extremely similar interfaces. However, they have different audiences.

After all, the objective on paper is for users to find someone to share their life with. But, as you can imagine, the real objective of any company is almost always to make money.

Therefore, all these apps work 100% free to “grab” you, and then try to get you to one or more subscriptions, so that you can access more “likes”, “swipes”, “roses” , etc… But, if you think about it, the reality is that if users start a relationship with someone, they stop being users and therefore potential customers.

This is something that ends up raising some problems in the field of “trust”. At the end of the day, what’s the point of paying to leave an app, if that same app has every interest in me continuing to pay.

Well, whatever the objectives of the apps and the company that owns all these platforms, the reality is that there are several success stories in the apps mentioned below. Do you know how they work?

Tinder, Hinge and Bumble: Meeting people is weird!

Hinge, Tinder and Bumble! What changes? Well, let’s go in parts

Tinder

This is the most popular app, known for its swipes and the number of people who don’t even remember that they have the app installed. It is a platform that claims to be capable of creating any type of relationship, from friendships, to dates, and who knows, to a more serious relationship.

However, this app is undeniably better known for being the platform for those who want quick and easy dating, being much more direct for this than other rival platforms.

How it works?

Extremely simple, if you don’t want to pay, it has a limited number of “swipes”, as well as some basic open features. When there is a swipe to the right on both sides, a match occurs, which in turn allows a two-way conversation.

It is worth noting that you can choose the ideal distance for you, as well as the gender and age of your ideal partner. If you want to pay, you can also change your location, or decide to only appear to those who have already “swiped right”.

However, it is a platform plagued by profiles that are not real (bots), which end up wasting your swipes without any results. There is also the idea that the app’s performance is different in the first few days, with more “swipes”, more conversations, etc… It seems like a model designed to force you to pay.

Bumble

A slightly different app, because despite the fact that the basic functionality is exactly the same as Tinder, when there is a “match”, the conversation can only start when the female person wants it. This makes it much easier to use, because it is always easier for there to be one side that is forced to speak, especially when using a form of conversation other than the classic “hello”.

Furthermore, all matches have a time limit of 24 hours, with the possibility of extending it if you want to give an extra opportunity to a certain person.

As with Tinder, there is also a premium model where you can pay to unlock more swipes, as well as other features.

Overall, the idea is that it’s an easier app to start a conversation and keep it going. It is also aimed at those who want serious relationships, and not just an outlet for fun.

Hinge

Another different app, which according to the company itself, has the main objective of being removed from your smartphone. However, like Tinder and Bumble, it also has premium subscriptions. (After all… It’s a business!)

That said, unlike other apps, Hinge’s premise is to try to connect you with people who have friends in common with you on Facebook and Instagram. In addition, it also presents location, age, full name, among other things, to give the idea that the person is really real. In other words, the idea here is to give you some extra security.

Furthermore, there is also now a new feature that tries to match other people who have similar tastes to yours, or who “swipe” people of the same type.

However, it offers many fewer daily “likes” or “swipes” compared to other platforms. Furthermore, it also requires someone to make the first move to start a conversation, which is a big disadvantage compared to Bumble. Like other apps, it also has a premium subscription to unlock “likes”, as well as other features.

Conclusion

Basically, you can use one of these apps, two, or all three. Well, you can even use 300 apps at the same time, no one will stop you. You’ll probably even “Match” with the same person on more than one app.

But I can tell you one thing, even if you are a little embarrassed to come home with your new girlfriend, and say that you met her on an app… The reality is that there is no problem at all. We live in 2024, and there are apps. It’s normal!